Feliz Ano!

Happy 2010! Can you believe it? It seems like just yesterday that we were all afraid of the turn of the century screwing up all the computers and the world collapsing as a result.

As we go into the new year, it's always good to reflect on the great things that have happened over the last year. When I was little, we would go to Red Lobster (finest seafood in all of the northwest Chicago suburbs) and mom would make us right down what we were thankful for as we dribbled butter all over the table. We put up some good resistance to the organized activity then, but the idea is sweet.

It that tradition, things we are thankful for, 2009 edition:

1. Moving to a city that we both have a mad crush on and having jobs that will allow us to stay here for the indefinite future.
2. Being able to travel to countries where we butcher the language, yet still being able to get around and see beautiful things and meet beautiful people.
3. Ice Cream
4. Finishing graduate school, getting an internship, and then turning it into a real job (just like all those career counselors say).
5. A new marionette named Guillermo from Goodwill to blame all bad smells on (Jonathan threw a tantrum, so I had to buy it).
6. Good friends to share good food, wine and conversation with
7. Cowboy boots
8. Having healthy, wonderful family in all parts of the country
9. A president that doesn't make me cringe when I hear him on NPR
10. Hot tea in rainy weather

And with all these things to be thankful for in 2009, 2010 is bound to be great! Wishing a happy new year to you and yours!

Dresses Schmesses!

Did you know that wedding dresses used to be black? I heard about this first from the mother of my groom-to-be, so did a little research and found out that:

“White has long been accepted as the traditional color of the wedding dress, but wedding gowns were not always white. The marriage of Queen Victoria to her cousin Albert of Saxe- Coburg in 1840 has had more influence on weddings than any other. Queen Victoria put the wheels in motion by marrying in white. Though brides continued to wed in gowns of different colors, white was now set as the color of choice for weddings and has continued ever since (http://www.fromtimespast.com/wedding.htm).”

Great – so now because of silly Victoria that married her cousin, I have to be super careful with red wine at my wedding. Thanks Queenie.

But why am I telling you this? Because I am about to embark on my first wedding dress shopping extravaganza! Should I go black? Stick with traditional white? Go short? Bedazzle? So many options!






And, keep in mind, that I have two style icons to live up to - Ann Schooley and Adair Heyl (see above for proof). Wowza.

Luckily, I have a team of well-styled ladies that have agreed to help me out in my quest next Saturday, Nov. 28th. We’ll be taking the day to visit a few shops and hopefully come out at the end of the day with a dress. For those that know me, you know I absolutely HATE shopping (except at farmer’s markets), so am going to rely on these wonderful ladies, their sense of humor, and whatever they choose to bring with them to get me through this shopping trip. If you’re in Portland on the 28th and have two X chromosomes, let me know and we’d love to have you come along!

Alamande left!

We’re moving along just swimmingly on this wedding planning thing and have a new, 100% fun Friday night event for you all – a barn dance! Remember those days of grade school gymnasiums, Mr. Goldman (at least at McArthur elementary school) teaching you how to “promenade home,” and having to actually touch somebody of the other gender (ewww)? Well, we’re going to relive those days and cure your aversion to square dancing! We’ve got the Conjugal Visitors (a local bluegrass group) booked, are working on getting a caller, and have a barn.

Consider yourself warned and go and start breaking in your cowboy boots. Yee-haw!

The recession must be over

I was just starting to get into the groove of having a sugar daddy. Jonathan has a lovely, adeptly paying job with the Forest Service and I have an “I-might-as-well-work-at-Burgerville” paying internship with the regional government. Well, that just changed!

No, Jonathan didn’t get canned. I got a real, permanent, grown-up job! I will soon be the first planner to walk the halls of the Multnomah County Public Health Department to ensure that Multnomah County (the county that Portland is in) develops itself and funds projects that improve human health whether it is through access to walkable and bikeable neighborhoods, having affordable and healthy food, and being able to breathe fresh air. I’ll be doing health impact assessments and oodles of collaboration.

Yeah, it’s basically a dream job. Have a drink on me tonight, ladies and gents. Just watch those calories…

And a note from the other sponsor…

Jonathan finally read the blog and got all freaked out by the over scheduling. Therefore, he wanted me to assure you that the events outlined below are OPTIONAL and that you will not be made a better or worse friend or family member by deciding whether or not to partake.

In addition, he will be putting together a list of other, less large group oriented things to do during your stay in Eugene just in case you need some twosey-woosy time (a patented Heyl phrase) or want to explore in a more impromptu way.

Now back to your regularly scheduled program...

So much more than a wedding!

As I mentioned before, Jonathan and I would love to make the wedding celebration more than just one piddley Saturday night. We put together this long list of fun things we want to do, but then had a minor freakout about having to plan everything. But then we had the best idea ever – delegate!

Delegation is always the thing I say I have to work on when they ask me in interviews, so this seems like a perfect opportunity to practice and then have a super sweet answer for my next job offerer (fingers crossed). I practiced this skill by asking some of my bestest, skilled, and most responsible friends if they would organize some of the pre-wedding activities so we wouldn’t have to. So far, here’s the party preview:

Thursday evening: Brewery tours and tastings (tag teamed by Amanda West and Adam Crawford)
Friday morning: River rafting/floating (commandeered by Aaron “What’s funny about safety? Nothing’s funny about safety” Derwingson)
Friday afternoon: Wine tasting and tour (hosted by sister/wino Lisa)
Friday evening: BBQ Schooley style (brought to you by the Schooley parents)
Saturday morning: Peach picking (led by produce connoisseur Laura Horton)
Saturday evening: THE WEDDING, OF COURSE!
Sunday morning: Schooley/Heyl family brunch (hosted by the Heyl crew)

There are still other ideas floating around in our (okay, my) heads. These include a critical mass bike ride Tour de Eugene and a Runaway Bride 5K, among others, but they need planners and time…maybe Thursday events? So much to do and so little time!

I hope that this entices you to come on out and spend some time hanging out with us in Eugene pre-wedding. More details to be out later so you can RSVP and get adequately pumped.

Cheers to Amy and Berekley! And what lessons can we take from this experience...

Jonathan and I just got back from a lovely wedding of a fabulous couple at a beautiful B&B resort in the hills of Vermont. As we were watching these two truly unique people get hitched, thoughts of what we should borrow (not telling) and what we should avoid (minister that talks like she’s in a Shakespearean play…got that Juan?) were running through our minds. Yet, we’ve only been to a limited number of weddings so only have limited experience with this pro/con discussion.

But wait! We have you - the four (potentially) readers of this blog! And assuming that you all have gone to at least five weddings in your lifetimes, that makes twenty weddings to add to this discussion. And if you ask anybody else in the room that you're in we could get up to forty. Yow!

Here’s your task – please comment with some great wedding ideas and things to avoid. We’re only doing this marriage thing once, so really want to make sure it’s pretty much the best thing ever. At the wedding, be on the lookout for your idea to come to fruition – but even if it doesn’t, thanks for the suggestions!